I have watched L and D nurses at Baptist South, Mayo, and UF Health open five page birth plans, skim for four seconds, clip them to the chart, and never look again. I have also watched the same nurses read a well-designed one page plan, nod, and ask a real clarifying question. This post will make you the second kind of patient.
TL;DR: One printed page. Bullet points. Your name and your top two priorities at the top. The rest is preferences. Do not write affirmations. Do not staple five pages together. Do not use emojis. One page is a tool. Five pages is a wish list.
Why shorter is more persuasive
The nurse caring for you at a Jacksonville hospital is managing your chart, her nursing handoff notes, the continuous fetal monitor strip, a medication list, and between four and eight other patients on her shift. The birth plan is not the first document she reads. If you make it a paragraph-heavy Google Doc with cute emojis and affirmations, it goes in the trash. If you make it scannable, she uses it during her shift.
The function of a good birth plan is not to recite your values. It is to help the people caring for you do their job in a way that matches what matters to you. That is a one page job.
What goes at the very top
First three lines, nothing else:
- Your full name, partner's name, provider's name, due date.
- Your top two priorities, one sentence each. Not five priorities, two.
- A one-line note on anything medically unusual the nurse should know in five seconds: a previous traumatic birth, a prior surgical history, hearing loss, primary language other than English, a specific phobia.
Example top block:
"Maria Lopez, partner Ben, Dr. Patel, EDD May 12. Top priorities: avoid episiotomy if possible, and skin to skin within the first hour. Note: primary Spanish speaker, interpreter at bedside please."
Labor preferences
One short section with bullets. Keep it to what actually matters to you.
Example:
- Prefer intermittent monitoring if baby tolerates it.
- Prefer movement: shower, ball, walking the halls.
- Please offer water and ice chips without me having to ask.
- Hannah Ghidey, doula, will stay with me throughout.
Two quick notes. First, "prefer" is a better word than "want" or "refuse." It keeps the door open to reality. Second, naming your doula on the plan is not a formality. It saves a conversation at shift change and means the incoming nurse knows who the extra adult in the room is.
Medication and interventions
Be specific and direct. Nurses prefer direct.
Useful lines I see on Jacksonville plans:
- "Please do not offer the epidural unless I ask. I know it is available."
- "I plan to get an epidural when I am ready. Please let me know when the anesthesia window is closing."
- "I would like to discuss any non-emergency interventions with my provider before we proceed."
- "Prefer saline lock over continuous IV fluids if I am tolerating oral hydration."
If a real emergency comes up, the plan goes out the window and that is fine. Your plan is for the ninety percent of labor that is not an emergency.
Pushing and immediate postpartum
This is the section L and D nurses read most during active labor. Keep it tight.
- Prefer to push in whatever position my body finds, including hands and knees or side-lying.
- Please do not offer a mirror unless I ask.
- Partner will announce the sex.
- Delayed cord clamping if possible.
- Skin to skin for at least an hour before the weight and measurements.
- Breastfeeding within the first hour if tolerated.
- Prefer to decline the eye ointment until after the first latch.
All of these are standard accommodations at Baptist South, Baptist Downtown, Mayo Clinic, UF Health, Ascension St. Vincent's, and Memorial for healthy deliveries. Some hospitals default to eye ointment at birth. You can ask to delay.
In case of cesarean
Not optional. Put it on the page.
About one in three US births is a cesarean (CDC). Having three or four lines about how you want that to go is not pessimism, it is preparation. The OR team will read these.
- Clear drape if offered.
- Arms unstrapped for skin to skin in the OR if stable.
- Partner and doula both in the OR if hospital policy allows.
- Delayed cord clamping if medically appropriate.
- Save placenta per separate form on file.
VBAC, induction, and other specifics
If planning a VBAC, add one line under the top priorities: "Planning a VBAC with my provider's support." Everything else on the page stays the same, with one exception: confirm with your provider whether intermittent monitoring is on the table. Most Jacksonville hospitals require continuous fetal monitoring for VBACs, but the style and whether you can still move in the bed is negotiable.
If you are being induced, add a line about what induction agent is planned (Cytotec, Cervidil, Foley balloon, Pitocin) and any preferences for pacing. Ask your provider what is typical at your hospital so you know what to expect.
If carrying twins or high risk, most Jacksonville maternal-fetal medicine practices deliver at Baptist Downtown or UF Health. Ask which campus and plan accordingly.
What to leave off
Affirmations, poetry, birth mantras, emojis, Pinterest-style graphics. That material is for your own eyes and your partner's, not for the chart. It distracts from the useful information.
Anything you have not actually talked through with your provider. If your plan says "no IV" and your OB does not allow that at your hospital, you will have an argument during labor. Settle disagreements at a thirty-six week visit, not in triage.
Printing and delivering it
Two printed copies, one for the chart, one for the bedside. Bring a third digital version on your phone in case something goes sideways. Hand it to the intake nurse when you arrive, along with a sentence like "this is my plan, the top two are what matter most to me, everything else is a preference." A nurse hears that sentence and knows she is working with someone organized and kind.
Hand one to the incoming nurse at every shift change. Your first nurse read it. The 7 p.m. nurse did not. A five second handoff of the printed page bridges the gap.
What I see in practice
I keep a stack of sample one pagers I share with clients at the thirty-four week prenatal visit. We edit together based on her specific hospital and provider. Almost every client I have sent in with a one pager has had the nurses comment on it in a good way. The flip side is also true. Clients who insist on a four page plan usually regret the length later.
FAQ
What if my hospital has its own template?
Most Jacksonville hospitals do not require one. A few hand you an optional checklist. If your hospital has one, fill it out and bring your own one pager too. Nurses will still read yours.
Do I share this with my OB or midwife before labor?
Yes, at a prenatal visit around thirty-four weeks. Most providers read it in five minutes and flag anything that will not fly at your hospital. That conversation saves grief during labor.
What if my partner and I disagree on a preference?
Talk through it before labor, with your doula if you have one. Your plan should be yours, but partner alignment is part of the prep.
Can I change the plan during labor?
Yes. The plan is not a contract. Women ask for epidurals they said they did not want and decline ones they said they did. That is normal.
Where can I get a fill in the blank template?
The Mom to Emotion Digital Pregnancy Planner has a one page birth plan template and a matching cesarean preferences sheet. Nine ninety-nine, downloadable at checkout.
If you want help writing yours for a specific Jacksonville hospital, the Birth Doula Package includes this work at your thirty-four week prenatal visit. Or grab the planner and do it yourself.
